Cookies and Healing
by amethyst62099
Summary: A one-shot involving Keiko, Jun, sugar cookies, and a little suprise.


Characters are owned by the creator of Sword Art Online, Reki Kawahara, I do not own them in any way, shape, or form.

Keiko poked her head into the now familiar sterilized room, a grin on her face and a tin in her hands. "Jun! Are you awake? I didn't come too early, did I?"

Somehow the boy had coaxed a nurse or a doctor into helping him sit, as he smiled wide at her sudden appearance, propped up by a pile of pillows. Jun shook his head. "Woke up early for treatment." His eyes noticed the light flashing from the tin and he grinned even wider. "What did you bring?"

"Cookies!"

"What kind of cookies?"

"Sugar cookies! Want one?"

Jun answered by leaning forward, trying to grab for the container even though Keiko still stood near the door. She laughed and crossed the room to sit in the usual chair, holding the metal box out to him, her cheeks dusted a rosy pink.

He pulled a cookie out and bit into it, flashing a smile to her. It made her blush darken. The girl had brought many treats over the past year once his doctor had given the go ahead, food baked by her, Suguha, Asuna, and occasionally Asada. Rika only watched from the table and teased her the whole time. Jun's favorite was always the simpler ones, sugar cookies, vanilla cakes, and plain cheesecakes. Even when Asuna walked her through the making of a cheesecake as she worked on her own in a bowl beside Keiko's, they never came out just right. The older girl always tasted the cake and reassured her that it was amazing, but the younger always asked for some of Asuna's to slip in. When eaten carefully by Jun he could always manage to tell which was hers and which was Asuna's, praising that the latter had a beautiful cake but Keiko's was better.

Today's batch of cookies was special. The group had had a baking day, dragging even Ryotaro and Kazuto along to join in. Asuna had the idea for Keiko to use some of all their individual batches of batter to make her cookies, just to see if Jun could tell them apart. After hearing of the challenge, Rika ran over and insisted on joining in as well, something that had never happened with baking involved. Keiko had accepted, flustered and red faced at the eager looks on her friend's faces, carefully scooping and putting various batters on the baking sheet. After hers were in the oven they continued as normal, each making a complete sheet of cookie drops to bake one at a time. Now she waited silently and nervously as Jun went through the tin and ate each one.

He stopped midway through one of the cookies and glanced over to her. "This one is definitely Asuna's."

He received a nod in return, Keiko had been careful about the indents of each cookie. She knew which person had made which batter based on them, but they still looked like normal cookies to anyone else. The one he currently had in his hand was one of Asuna's.

Jun continued to make his way through the treats before pausing after one bite into a circle of cookie. Keiko stiffened – it was one of hers. He turned and smiled once again. "Found the best one!"

"O – Oh? What…. What makes it the best?"

"You made this one. Of course it's the best."

Keiko went red. "H – H - How can you tell?

"It's just… yours. I don't know how to explain… but it's definitely the best one in this box!"

She couldn't help but give a small smile in return, then pulled a smaller container from a bag she had carried in. "H – Here."

Jun looked at her, confused. "There's more?"

Keiko nodded.

The boy lifted the lid to find more cookies packed carefully inside. He tried a bite of one and rested his head on a hand, watching her from the corner of his eye. "These are all of yours."

She looked at the wall, unable to meet his gaze. "Y – Yeah…"

Jun's face lit with yet another smile. Keiko was suspicious almost immediately – this was a happy smile, but it was a little mischievous as well.

"What is it?

"Oh, nothing."

"J – Jun – kun! You can't just look like that and then not tell me!"

"All right, all right, you win."

She held her breath, worried about what he might say.

Jun polished off the last of the cookie he held – it had been another of one of hers – before turning to meet her eyes completely.

Keiko swallowed hard; noticing slightly that her face had heated up again.

His eyes looked a tad nervous, covered mostly by excitement and happiness, his cheeks a light pink. "Keiko – chan… how about when I'm released for a day you teach me how to make cookies?"

She felt her cheeks redden further. "Wh – What?"

Jun laughed. "A week from today, if all goes well, the doctors are letting me leave the hospital for the afternoon. They said it's a trial."

The girl blinked.

"Well? How about it?"

A moment after processing his words, Keiko's face lit up to mirror his own. The nervousness left his eyes as he saw the smile.

"Yes!"


End file.
